Southern California -- this just in

Chick-fil-A: Employee mocking Asians no reflection on company

Officials at Chick-fil-A restaurant said an incident at an Irvine store in which an employee put offensive names mocking Asian customers on their receipts is in no way a reflection of the company.

It was "simply [a] case of immaturity, failed judgment and human error" on the part of one employee, said Don Perry, Chick-fil-A's vice president for public relations.

The employee was fired after the customers complained to management, Perry said.

Rather than take the names of two Asian customers, she typed "Ching" and "Chong," which appeared, respectively, on the two customers' receipts, according to Kelvin Lee, a UC Irvine student and friend of the customers. He posted photos of the receipts on his Tumblr account.

Since then, the post has spread through the blogosphere, attracting negative attention to the fast-food chain, which has already garnered animus from some corners because of its openly Christian roots and connection to conservative stances.

Lee, the UC Irvine student who started the conversation, seems to be appalled that some are making comments as inflammatory as the original incident.

He wrote, "I realize Chick-fil-A hasn’t exactly had the best track record when it comes to issues of social justice, but I don’t think the horrible mistake on the part of one individual is reason enough to launch a witch hunt.

"There’s no way the person who hired this woman would have been able to know she’d do something so stupid."

Perry told The Times that the customers were regulars at the restaurant and that the manager quickly dealt with the complaint.